Russia urges France to free dual national held on spying suspicions

Insights

• Anna Novikova, a dual Russian-French national, was detained in France last year on suspicion of espionage.
• French prosecutors say she is suspected of approaching company executives to obtain sensitive information on French economic interests.
• Prosecutors have not named the companies or provided details on contacts or methods.
• Moscow calls the detention a false pretext and accuses France of a wave of spy accusations across Europe.
• Novikova is in pre-trial detention and her husband says she has not yet been appointed a legal representative.
• Her humanitarian group provided aid in Russian-controlled areas of Ukraine and she has publicly denied being an agent of the Kremlin or the FSB.